CA Presents 2016 Sister Cities Exchange Program

Parents and teens interested in learning about Columbia Association’s (CA) annual summer Sister Cities High School Exchange program are invited to attend one of four informational sessions.

The sessions will take place on Thursday, Nov. 19; Monday, Dec. 7; Thursday, Jan. 14; and Wednesday, Jan. 27. All sessions are scheduled to be held from 7 to 8 p.m. at The Other Barn, 5851 Robert Oliver Place in the Oakland Mills Village Center.

The program will include a presentation by Laura Smit, program manager for CA’s international exchange and multicultural programs, a question-and-answer session and teen and parent alumni of the program sharing their experiences.

Teen participants spend approximately two weeks of cultural and linguistic immersion during the summer in one of Columbia’s European sister cities: Cergy-Pontoise in France or Tres Cantos in Spain. During this time, they are hosted by the family of a French or Spanish student. After returning to the United States, students will then host their French/Spanish counterparts for another two weeks. Throughout the trip, there are organized group activities for the participants, both abroad and in the U.S. This year’s participants will depart with their respective chaperoned groups for France or Spain at the end of June. The program then runs through the end of July.

The program fee is $700 for Columbia residents and $850 for non-Columbia residents, excluding airline tickets. Airline tickets in summer 2016 will range from $1,200 to $1,500 per participant. Applicants must be high school students residing in Howard County and must have completed high school level three of French or Spanish by the end of the current academic year (or have the equivalent language fluency).

There are excellent scholarships available for Columbia residents who qualify. The application deadline is Feb. 19. For an application or more information, visit ColumbiaAssociation.org/TeenExchange, or contact Laura Smit at 410-715-3162 or International@ColumbiaAssociation.org.

CA’s International Exchange and Multicultural Programs foster international understanding and celebrate the diverse cultures of Columbia. The goals of the International Exchange Program include developing new exchanges with Columbia’s three sister cities and creating new Sister City relationships in other cities and nations. CA also develops multicultural programs for the community such as the World Languages Café, Culture Fests, the International Book Club and the World Food Passport program. For more information, go to ColumbiaAssociation.org/Multicultural.

About Columbia Association

Columbia Association (CA) is a nonprofit service corporation that manages Columbia, Maryland, a planned community that is home to approximately 100,000 people and several thousand businesses. Additional information about CA is available at ColumbiaAssociation.org.